with a line from Robert Frost
I was the first creature after the apocalypse,
a bougainvillea, beautiful & tender.
I carry memories of history in my lenticles,
my mother is alive, she lives there too.
A bougainvillea beautiful & tender,
my petal is a city of blood & I’m sure
my mother is alive, she lives there too.
I stem from a line of horticulturists,
my petal is a city of blood & I’m sure
there is a battalion of bats in every corner.
I stem from a line of horticulturists
and I’m the last of their kind. Because,
there is a battalion of bats in every corner
killing the butterflies and honeybees—
to the very last of their kind. Because,
In this new garden of mine, nectar has a tendency
to kill the butterflies and honeybees.
Even the most beautiful flowers,
in this new garden of mine, has a tendency
to wither before it blooms. Because
I carry memories of history in my lenticels.
I do not know the love of a horticulturist.
Nor the touch of butterflies & honeybees.
I was the first creature after the apocalypse
And that alone has made all the difference.
Gospel Chinedu is an Anatomist and poet based in Anambra, Nigerian. He is a joint-winner of the 11th Suspect Poetry Prize, 2025. His works of poetry have appeared or are forthcoming in Chestnut Review, Massachusetts Review, ONLY POEMS, Forum Magazine, Porter House Review, and Poetry Wales. Gospel tweets @gonspoetry.